Although it's been almost five years since its surfacing onto the World Wide Web, an Osama Bin Laden (Terrorist) -themed computer virus continues to find its way into e-mail inboxes.
So far there have been no reports of an infection in the area, but a few people have received e-mails warning them not to open anything with a subject line saying "Osama Bin Laden (Terrorist) Captured"
"A couple of guys around here have heard of it," said Aaron Williams, assistant manager at EC Computers. "One said they received an e-mail saying not to open it. Hopefully we won't have anyone coming in with the virus problem."
The virus began in 2004, according to Snopes.com, when e-mails referring to the terrorist leader's capture or suicide began circulating on the Internet. With such a tempting e-mail subject, many would open the e-mail and download the attachment which claimed to be a video or picture, but was actually a file for the Backdoor.Hacarmy.D Trojan horse.
In 2005, a similar e-mail made the rounds again, but with a version of the Psyme Trojan.
A hoax virus followed in mid-2006, with subject such as "Invitation," "Merry Christmas" or "Olympic Torch," said the site.
Another e-mail has been passed around the Internet as well, warning computer users of the legit and bogus e-mails.
"E-mails with pictures of Osama Bin Laden hanged are being sent and the moment that you open these e-mails your computer will crash and you will not be able to fix it," said one such message.
In 2006, the site said both Trojan viruses easily can be found and removed from a computer with updated virus removal software, but computer technicians said it's better to avoid opening e-mails with the suspect subject lines.
"We try to educate people not to open attachments and things like that," said Williams. "We haven't had a problem yet, and even though repairs are a big part of our business, we want people to be safe on the Net and not get into trouble."
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Is Linux Cheaper Than Windows?
Friday, February 13, 2009
No, this isn't another rant about how you should convert to Linux because it's free, although it is free. Free is a four-letter word among those who mock at the mere mention of Linux. Yes, Linux is free, but that doesn't give it an unfair advantage on the desktop because most computers arrive preloaded with Windows — so to the buyer it appears Windows is also free.
How much did your computer cost? $600? $999? $1,999 How much has it cost you since you bought it? The price of a computer is not a one-time expense — it is rather, an ongoing one. How much you pay for your computer over a year's time, or the entire lifetime of the computer, depends greatly on your choice of operating system. Hard to believe? Do the calculations for yourself.
Let's look at the costs beyond the purchase price of the computer. The following list outlines additional ownership costs.
• Desktop-level Tech Support
• Hardware Upgrades
• Software Upgrades
• Hardware Failure
• Viruses, Spyware, and Other Malware
• Training
You use desktop support, through either an outside tech support company or an in-house person or group. These are the people whom you call to show up at your desk, wave you out of your chair so they can "drive" and commence to fix whatever problem it is that you caused yourself. Their services aren't cheap, and in-house support technicians cost a bundle as well. For their cost, calculate the amount of money you spend on support divided by the number of computers, printers and major peripherals you own.
How much will you save on Desktop support by using Linux? You won't save much because it isn't necessarily the operating system as much as it is "user error" that costs you so much in support. It's true, user error accounts for a majority of desktop support calls. The answer to this dilemma is training — more on that later.
When you converted to Vista from Windows XP, how much did you spend? Assuming again that the operating system is free, how much did you spend on hardware upgrades so your current systems would support Vista? Add in the cost of complete replacement computers that you bought because your current ones wouldn't support Vista.
The Linux factor is significant here. Your current hardware (before the Vista upgrade) is sufficient to run any desktop Linux distribution. The shock and awe you'd experience breathing new life into these systems with Linux is worth every penny you didn't spend.
Do you ever tire of software upgrade madness? Every two years or so, you have to upgrade your major applications because — well, just because. Software upgrades are often accompanied by hardware upgrades (see previous section) when you find out that the latest version of an application needs twice the amount of memory that your current computer has. Software costs can send your budget into cardiac arrest, but there's hope in using free applications; even on Windows, you can enjoy the freedom of free software. That dirty word, free, is a factor when tallying up the price tag for a new version of Microsoft Office for everyone in your company. OpenOffice.org starts to look pretty good compared to at least $200 a pop for a Microsoft Office upgrade.
Hardware failures occur because you're using hardware. The operating system doesn't matter. Unless you use thin-client hardware with no moving parts (and those fail too), you'll have to factor in hardware failures to your overall budget. It happens. Get over it.
And now we tread into the financial minefield of viruses, spyware and assorted malware that awaits the click of your mouse or the typo into the URL address bar of your browser. Windows and Internet Explorer are the most popular targets among purveyors of fine Internet garbage that serves them well in costing you hours of downtime, repair and productivity loss. No, Linux is not immune, but it does have built-in safeguards against most malware intrusions. FireFox is a safer browser than Internet Explorer and has built-in malware detection and prevention algorithms. The costs and loss associated with such maladies is greatly diminished with a Linux-based desktop.
The Linux factor is significant here. Your current hardware (before the Vista upgrade) is sufficient to run any desktop Linux distribution. The shock and awe you'd experience breathing new life into these systems with Linux is worth every penny you didn't spend.
Do you ever tire of software upgrade madness? Every two years or so, you have to upgrade your major applications because — well, just because. Software upgrades are often accompanied by hardware upgrades (see previous section) when you find out that the latest version of an application needs twice the amount of memory that your current computer has. Software costs can send your budget into cardiac arrest, but there's hope in using free applications; even on Windows, you can enjoy the freedom of free software. That dirty word, free, is a factor when tallying up the price tag for a new version of Microsoft Office for everyone in your company. OpenOffice.org starts to look pretty good compared to at least $200 a pop for a Microsoft Office upgrade.
Hardware failures occur because you're using hardware. The operating system doesn't matter. Unless you use thin-client hardware with no moving parts (and those fail too), you'll have to factor in hardware failures to your overall budget. It happens. Get over it.
And now we tread into the financial minefield of viruses, spyware and assorted malware that awaits the click of your mouse or the typo into the URL address bar of your browser. Windows and Internet Explorer are the most popular targets among purveyors of fine Internet garbage that serves them well in costing you hours of downtime, repair and productivity loss. No, Linux is not immune, but it does have built-in safeguards against most malware intrusions. FireFox is a safer browser than Internet Explorer and has built-in malware detection and prevention algorithms. The costs and loss associated with such maladies is greatly diminished with a Linux-based desktop.
Related Topics
online microsoft technical services
windows updates
windows vista help
How much did your computer cost? $600? $999? $1,999 How much has it cost you since you bought it? The price of a computer is not a one-time expense — it is rather, an ongoing one. How much you pay for your computer over a year's time, or the entire lifetime of the computer, depends greatly on your choice of operating system. Hard to believe? Do the calculations for yourself.
Let's look at the costs beyond the purchase price of the computer. The following list outlines additional ownership costs.
• Desktop-level Tech Support
• Hardware Upgrades
• Software Upgrades
• Hardware Failure
• Viruses, Spyware, and Other Malware
• Training
You use desktop support, through either an outside tech support company or an in-house person or group. These are the people whom you call to show up at your desk, wave you out of your chair so they can "drive" and commence to fix whatever problem it is that you caused yourself. Their services aren't cheap, and in-house support technicians cost a bundle as well. For their cost, calculate the amount of money you spend on support divided by the number of computers, printers and major peripherals you own.
How much will you save on Desktop support by using Linux? You won't save much because it isn't necessarily the operating system as much as it is "user error" that costs you so much in support. It's true, user error accounts for a majority of desktop support calls. The answer to this dilemma is training — more on that later.
When you converted to Vista from Windows XP, how much did you spend? Assuming again that the operating system is free, how much did you spend on hardware upgrades so your current systems would support Vista? Add in the cost of complete replacement computers that you bought because your current ones wouldn't support Vista.
The Linux factor is significant here. Your current hardware (before the Vista upgrade) is sufficient to run any desktop Linux distribution. The shock and awe you'd experience breathing new life into these systems with Linux is worth every penny you didn't spend.
Do you ever tire of software upgrade madness? Every two years or so, you have to upgrade your major applications because — well, just because. Software upgrades are often accompanied by hardware upgrades (see previous section) when you find out that the latest version of an application needs twice the amount of memory that your current computer has. Software costs can send your budget into cardiac arrest, but there's hope in using free applications; even on Windows, you can enjoy the freedom of free software. That dirty word, free, is a factor when tallying up the price tag for a new version of Microsoft Office for everyone in your company. OpenOffice.org starts to look pretty good compared to at least $200 a pop for a Microsoft Office upgrade.
Hardware failures occur because you're using hardware. The operating system doesn't matter. Unless you use thin-client hardware with no moving parts (and those fail too), you'll have to factor in hardware failures to your overall budget. It happens. Get over it.
And now we tread into the financial minefield of viruses, spyware and assorted malware that awaits the click of your mouse or the typo into the URL address bar of your browser. Windows and Internet Explorer are the most popular targets among purveyors of fine Internet garbage that serves them well in costing you hours of downtime, repair and productivity loss. No, Linux is not immune, but it does have built-in safeguards against most malware intrusions. FireFox is a safer browser than Internet Explorer and has built-in malware detection and prevention algorithms. The costs and loss associated with such maladies is greatly diminished with a Linux-based desktop.
The Linux factor is significant here. Your current hardware (before the Vista upgrade) is sufficient to run any desktop Linux distribution. The shock and awe you'd experience breathing new life into these systems with Linux is worth every penny you didn't spend.
Do you ever tire of software upgrade madness? Every two years or so, you have to upgrade your major applications because — well, just because. Software upgrades are often accompanied by hardware upgrades (see previous section) when you find out that the latest version of an application needs twice the amount of memory that your current computer has. Software costs can send your budget into cardiac arrest, but there's hope in using free applications; even on Windows, you can enjoy the freedom of free software. That dirty word, free, is a factor when tallying up the price tag for a new version of Microsoft Office for everyone in your company. OpenOffice.org starts to look pretty good compared to at least $200 a pop for a Microsoft Office upgrade.
Hardware failures occur because you're using hardware. The operating system doesn't matter. Unless you use thin-client hardware with no moving parts (and those fail too), you'll have to factor in hardware failures to your overall budget. It happens. Get over it.
And now we tread into the financial minefield of viruses, spyware and assorted malware that awaits the click of your mouse or the typo into the URL address bar of your browser. Windows and Internet Explorer are the most popular targets among purveyors of fine Internet garbage that serves them well in costing you hours of downtime, repair and productivity loss. No, Linux is not immune, but it does have built-in safeguards against most malware intrusions. FireFox is a safer browser than Internet Explorer and has built-in malware detection and prevention algorithms. The costs and loss associated with such maladies is greatly diminished with a Linux-based desktop.
Related Topics
online microsoft technical services
windows updates
windows vista help
Computer Virus In City
Friday, February 6, 2009
Internet access has been turned off to most computers. The IT department is dealing with a computer virus that uses the Internet to spread itself. The city says it's affecting a "significant amount" of computer work stations.
The City is currently dealing with a computer virus that is affecting a significant amount of computer work stations within the City system.
The ability to provide essential services such as 9ll, Police, Fire, traffic services and building permits are not affected at this time. However, because the virus appears to be using the Internet to spread itself, Web access has been shut off for most City computers. Outside users should be able to access the City's Web site at this time, however, some intermittent outages have occurred. If users are having trouble accessing www.springfieldmo.gov and still need to contact the City, they can call 864-1010 to reach the Department of Public Information.
The Information Systems Department is working continuously with the City's virus removal provider, McAfee, Inc., to resolve the issue. The virus does not appear to have affected City servers, and there does not appear to be any issue of lost data or information at this time. The virus appears to be spreading via Windows executable files, not through e-mails or e-mail attachments. The City's e-mail system is operating normally.
The City is currently dealing with a computer virus that is affecting a significant amount of computer work stations within the City system.
The ability to provide essential services such as 9ll, Police, Fire, traffic services and building permits are not affected at this time. However, because the virus appears to be using the Internet to spread itself, Web access has been shut off for most City computers. Outside users should be able to access the City's Web site at this time, however, some intermittent outages have occurred. If users are having trouble accessing www.springfieldmo.gov and still need to contact the City, they can call 864-1010 to reach the Department of Public Information.
The Information Systems Department is working continuously with the City's virus removal provider, McAfee, Inc., to resolve the issue. The virus does not appear to have affected City servers, and there does not appear to be any issue of lost data or information at this time. The virus appears to be spreading via Windows executable files, not through e-mails or e-mail attachments. The City's e-mail system is operating normally.
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